The cheongsam or qipao in Chinese, is evolved from a kind of ancient China uniform of Manchu ethnic minority. In ancient times, it generally referred to long gowns worn by the inhabitants of Manchuria, Mongolia and the Eight-Banner.
In the early years of the Qing Dynasty, long gowns featured collar, cuff-shaped narrow a horse's hoof, buttons on left front, four slits and a size of assembly. Carriers generally rolled cuff them, and laid out hunting or fighting to cover the back of the hand. In winter, the cuff could serve to fight against the cold. The gown had four slits, one on the left, right, front and back, which reached the knees. It was mounted on the body and a little warm. Attached with a belt, dress long period can take solid food and utensils when people went hunting. long gowns were mostly men in blue, gray or green, and women, white.
Another feature of Manchu cheongsam was that people generally, he wore a jacket over who was either with buttons on the front, a twisted front, or forehead shaped lute, etc.
After the early Manchu rulers came to China proper, they moved their capital to Beijing and cheongsam began to spread in the central plains. The Qing Dynasty unified China, and unified the uniform of the country as well. At that time, men wore a long robe and mandarin jacket over the dress, while women wore cheongsam. Although the 1911 Revolution toppled the rule of the Qing Dynasty, the female dress survived the political change and, with successive improvements, has become the traditional dress of Chinese women.
Until 1930, the Manchus, no matter male or female, all wore loose-bottomed and straight wide-sleeved long dress with a wide front. The lower edge cheongsam women reached calves floral motifs embroidered on it, while the men cheongsam reached the ankles and had no decorations.
Since the 1930s, cheongsam almost became the uniform for women. Folk women, students, workers and women most tone were all dressed in cheongsam, which even became a dress for occasions of social intercourses or diplomatic activities. Later, cheongsam even spread to foreign countries and became the favorite of foreign women.
After the 1940s, influenced by the fashion house and abroad, Manchu cheongsam men, was abolished, while women's cheongsam became narrow-sleeved and fitted to the waist and had a relatively loose hip part, and its edge lower reaches the ankles. Then there emerge various forms of cheongsams we see today that emphasize color decoration and set off the beauty of the female figure.
Why do people like to wear the cheongsam Han? The main reason is that it fits well the female Chinese figure, has simple lines and elegant looks. Moreover, it is suitable for wear in all seasons by young and old.
The cheongsam can be long or short, unlined or interlined, woolen or silk floss. Moreover, with different materials, the cheongsam presents different styles. Cheongsams silk with patterns of flowerlet, plain lattices or thin lines demonstrate the charm of femininity and the serious, those are catchy and beautiful brocade and suitable for occasions of greeting guests and attending banquets.
When Chinese cheongsams were exposed for sale in countries like Japan and France, they were warmly received by local women, who did not hesitate to buy Chinese cheongsams especially high-end black velvet interlined with or carved with golden flowers. Cheongsam features strong national flavor and embodies the beauty of Chinese traditional costume. It not only represents Chinese female costume but also becomes a symbol of traditional oriental dress.
